SMALL RAMEKIN LIDS 3D print model

To make adding a pinch of spice quick and easy, we keep three small Ramikens next to the stove, filled with our most-used seasonings. We cook a lot, and use them almost everyday; to keep them covered and protected, I made these lids. They’re printed in PLA, and have held up perfectly well for years. Hope you enjoy using them, too.

There are three lids in the set: SALT, PEPPER, and GARLIC; also included is a printing support stand (see below). Small details differ between the caps, because they were designed at different times, using different approaches. Because the ramekins we have are slightly different sizes, so are the covers. And because your ramekins may be different yet, the cover models might need to be scaled to fit. I am able to scale by percentage or specify new sizes in TurboCAD, and can also scale in the UpStudio print manager; your software setup will probably allow the same. The models’ critical dimensions are listed here, along with our ramekin sizes: RAMEKIN OD LID ID LID ODSALT 2.46” 2.48” 2.71”PEPPER 2.65” 2.73” 2.94” GARLIC 2.35” 2.36” 2.52”

ABOUT PRINTING THESE CAPSI want to offer my advice on getting good prints from these models. Printing raised-letter lids with FDM technology presents something of an orientation problem – just how will you position the model for a clean print, requiring the least support removal? Unless you have a powder-bed 3D printer, or a machine which bridges ridiculously, incredibly well, if the lid is placed top up, support will be needed underneath, and if placed top down - which would be fine if the top were flat - the face of the letter will print OK, but there will be a forest of support all around it, and messy removal, either way. Standing the lid on edge also requires supports, and adds the problem of bed adhesion, because of the tiny contact patch. I have an UpBox+ and couldn’t succesfully print in any of these ways, so I’ve been experimenting with printing the caps at an angle, using a support stand I designed for the purpose; that file is included.

The renderings show the stand, separately, and joined with a cap for printing. Detail views show how the stand is minimally attached to the lid: the stand’s upper contact edge tapers to a thin ridge, and the lower contact point just barely contacts the lid’s outside; both attachments can be snipped off clean after printing. This version of the stand worked pretty well, but I’m still developing the design; I included the file as an example and starting point for your versions. For my next version, I plan to change to a 45° angle, and make the lower contact point a tapered edge similar to the upper contact, instead of the dual bumps it is now.